Innovation means different things to different organizations, but at A. O. Smith, it has been the common thread that has allowed us to thrive as a company for 150 years.
What began as a small Milwaukee-based machine shop in 1874 has evolved into a leading global water technology company committed to improving the lives of our customers by ensuring access to clean, safe, hot water.
In the late 1800s, business was good for a man skilled in metalwork, and our founder Charles Jeremiah Smith grew to become a major supplier of metal components for manufacturers of baby carriages and bicycles. Charles’ sons later joined the business and during the automotive revolution, grew it to become the leading supplier of steel car frames in the U.S.
In 1921, A. O. Smith invented the “Mechanical Marvel,” the world’s first fully automated automobile frame assembly plant, capable of making 10,000 frames per day. By the mid-1930s, A. O. Smith engineers perfected the process of fusing glass to steel, leading to a series of new, glass-lined products including beer kegs, brewing tanks and eventually, residential water heaters.
In the decades that followed, the business continued to grow at breakneck speed, adding new locations and entering new industries. In each case, it brought along the A. O. Smith values: doing business with honesty and integrity in a workplace environment of mutual respect and dignity.
In 2011, A. O. Smith sold its electric motor business and embarked on a strategy to become a leading global water technology company. This vision for the future grew through acquisitions of commercial and residential water heater and boiler manufacturers and water treatment experts.
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- Employees at the Pressure Vessel Division in Milwaukee ready a large steel sheet for hole punching in the 1940s.
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- Construction crews install an A. O. Smith glass-lined brewery tank at the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company in Milwaukee.
Modernizing water technology
When it comes to water heating and water treatment, A. O. Smith strives to stay in tune with trends, the needs of the customer and the broader market.
The company focuses heavily on innovation and solving problems in a new way. As energy efficiency demands and water quality challenges continue to evolve, A. O. Smith will work to provide solutions.
It’s who A. O. Smith is as a company – taking our engineering minds and solving problems in a better way, in a way that can be scaled and drives cost efficiency, so our products have broader adoption in the marketplace. Our tagline is A. O. Smith: Innovation has a name, and that’s what drives us.
With a focus on new product development, technology upgrades, strategic acquisitions and partnerships, A. O. Smith will continue to have a presence wherever water flows.
A. O. Smith Corporation
11270 West Park Place, Suite 170
Milwaukee, WI 53224
aosmith.com
414.359.4000
